Kurzweil 1000
Kurzweil 1000 is award-winning software that makes printed or electronic text readily available to people who are blind or visually impaired. It combines accessibility, communication and productivity tools to ease and enhance their reading, writing and learning experience.
The software speaks text aloud in a variety of natural-sounding voices that can be modified to suit individual preferences. In addition, it provides users with document creation and editing as well as study skills capabilities for note taking, summarizing and outlining text.
Additional Detail for Kurzweil 1000
Kurzweil 1000 delivers quick access to a wealth of information including online books, magazines and encyclopedias so users can pursue any reading interests. They can also take their reading wherever they go by sending files to Braille note takers and embossers as well as portable devices such as DAISY and MP3 audio players.
Kurzweil 1000 is easy to use for beginners, yet powerful and flexible for advanced users. With its wide array of useful features, users save time and gain independence - whether at home, at school, or at work.
Kurzweil 1000 - Features and Benefits
- State of the Art Synthetic Speech Options
Clear, human-sounding VoiceText voices from NeoSpeech as well as IBM ViaVoice deliver superior text-to-speech (TTS), making reading easier to hear. Users can adjust all voices to suit their individual tastes. - Choices for More Accurate Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
Two OCR engines, ScanSoft OCR and ABBYY FineReader, provide the most accurate available OCR. For the best possible scanning results, Kurzweil 1000 also has the ability to automatically correct many errors. In addition, a noise filter option lets users ignore regions near the edge of a page that were incorrectly identified as text. - Scanning Optimization
Kurzweil 1000 incorporates powerful scanning optimization enhancements such as thresholding, brightness, resolution, and speckle removal, thereby providing an easy way to obtain better recognition results and to eliminate the frustrating trial and error associated with scan settings. - Writing and Editing Tools
Kurzweil 1000 makes document creation and modification easy with an audible text editor, dictionary, thesaurus and prioritized spell checker. In addition, proofreading keystrokes for reading a word at a time with full punctuation and capitalization reporting is especially useful when exact punctuation is essential. - Study Tools
Bookmarks, notes, document links, annotations, skimming, summarization and outline creation add an array of tools for reading reinforcement. Students and professionals can use these features to quickly find, mark and retain important information. - Table Creation, Editing and Reading
Kurzweil 1000 users can access and work with tables with ease. They can create and modify tables using simple editing operations. In addition, users can convert blocks of text into a table and, conversely, turn a table into text. Table Reading has also been enhanced to provide easier access to table-rich content, especially from Web sources such as Wikipedia. - Online Information Search and Retrieval
Users can quickly obtain online information from a variety of sources, whether e-books, magazines or encyclopedias, all within Kurzweil 1000. In response to simple requests, it efficiently searches selected Web repositories, including Bookshare.org, NLS Web Braille, AccessWorld, Talking Newspaper Association of the UK, NFB Publications, or online encyclopedias such as Columbia Encyclopedia and Wikipedia (in multiple languages), and presents choices for download. - Sending Files to Portable Devices
Kurzweil 1000 can send files to BrailleNote, Book Port, BookCourier and other devices as well, so users can read documents and books on the go. - DAISY Format Support
Kurzweil 1000 opens, reads, edits and saves text-only DAISY files, including all bookmarks, links and notes. In addition, Kurzweil 1000 has Type 2 DAISY file support, offering full audio and audible document navigation which allows users to quickly access different parts of a document, such as a table of contents, indices and bookmarks, and navigate the document. - Audio File Creation
Users can create MP3 and WAV audio files of text documents. If the document being converted into audio files contains bookmarks, Kurzweil 1000 can use those bookmarks to separate audio files into more manageable and organized sections, adding to the convenience of hearing Kurzweil 1000 read on portable players. - Braille Embosser Compatibility
Kurzweil 1000 accommodates Braille embossers, allowing adjustments to number of cells per line, lines per page, page breaks and interpoint. - Broad Access to Electronic Files
Any file type that can be printed by an application installed on the computer can be opened with Kurzweil 1000, dramatically expanding available reading resources. In addition, users with Microsoft Word can open and save any file format that Microsoft Word supports, making it easier to access and work with a wide range of files. - Other Notable Features
Magnification and highlighting support for low vision users, Business Applications - Calculator, Photocopier and Fax, and Sending files through popular e-mail applications
Kurzweil 1000 System Requirements
- 200 MHz or higher Pentium processor. If you are using the VoiceText TTS, you'll need 400 MHz Pentium II or faster.
- 64MB of RAM; 256MB is recommended if using VoiceText.
- At least 500MB of available hard disk space; and an additional 625MB if using VoiceText.
- CD-ROM drive.
- Compatible TWAIN scanner
- Sound Card: Sound Blaster - compatible sound card with speakers.
- Full-size keyboard and/or a 17-button keypad.
- For Audio File Creation: MP3 encoder and/or media player.
- MP3 File Playback on Other Devices: MP3 player capable of playing multiple sampling rates.
- Operating Systems Supported: Windows 98, 2000, ME, XP.
Kurzweil 1000 Upgrades
Kurzweil 1000 software upgrades are available. For more information, please call Universal Low Vision Aids at 800-369-0347 or 614-224-6465.